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I got to sleep with Marigold-onee-sama!

Edited by: Trismegistus Shandy
Beta Read by: Yuki Kitsune, M A Thermidor

Notes from Aimi: For the first time in my life I got to sleep with a sexy girl!  It felt so wonderful! I squeed when I found out that Marigold-onee-sama only had one bedroll.  It would probably be silly if she carried multiple ones, but the way she carries things really amazed me and I had to wonder if there was a limit to the system.

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Well, I’m getting ahead of myself because I was so excited by it... So where I left off was around here.

“That’s such a complex name for one of the Bushi Tribes. It’s nice to meet you, Aimi-kitty!” Marigold smiled as she sheathed her sword with a sheepish expression. Maybe she felt like she was being a show-off.  I went into gales of giggles. Marigold rolled her eyes. “You’re a pretty happy kitty, aren’t you, Aimi?”

“I try.” I giggled. “Yes, I try to laugh as much as possible.  Life isn’t always happy, but there are many wonderful moments. Being depressed all the time just makes you miss all those great moments, right?”

“Eh? That’s not a bad philosophy, but the world is full of sad things.  It tends to be a parade of endless tragedy. You’re right though, Aimi-kitty!” She smiled at me.

“Ehe… yay! So, ummies… tell me more about yourself?” I suggested as I rubbed up against her.

“More about me?  Well, there isn't all that much to talk about.  My career hasn’t been very inspiring,” she sighed as she patted my head.

“Ahhh… but I want to know more about you!” I cooed as I nuzzled her.

She sighed and laughed, and finally, after a moment, she settled down by the fire beside me.

“Alright, if you’re going to keep nagging, I’ll tell you something.” Marigold shook her head. “The truth is I’m an orphan.  I’ve had to fight for everything I have. Becoming an adventurer was always my goal, but I’m not a particularly good one,” she demurred.

“An orphan, really really? That’s so sad!” I exclaimed as I glomped her.

“Hey… wait… you’re way too affectionate… that’s really excessive…” she admonished me.

“Eh? I’m sowwy… it feels good to snuggle!  I never had the nerve to…” I blushed scarlet. “Uh… no, please tell me more, Marigold-onee-sama!”

She blushed when I called her that, and I noted her expression.

“Well… like I said, there isn’t much else… I never have left my hometown yet. There’s a small * Double A * office there.  I saved up for the entry fee for a year doing all sorts of really awful work, mainly I had to work as a tavern waitress. It had to have been the worst part of my life…”

* A Kami newsflash update: ‘Double A’ is a local term which refers to an Adventurer’s Agency organization in the world of Gardenia! *

“Really, Marigold-onee-sama? That’s so sad… but you got your dream! That’s so amazing!” I enthused, snuggling more.

“Ehhh…” She blushed as I nuzzled her, and probably closer towards her breasts than I really should have.  That was very indecent of me! “Why don’t we drop this subject, for now. I need to tidy up and we should get some rest. I’m pretty drained after all that healing.” Marigold stood quickly and I pouted as I watched her crouch by the fire.  Marigold reached towards the pot, and I bounded over a few steps with an eager smile.

“Can I help you?  Do you have bags that things go into?” I looked at the pot and wondered for a moment how she could conveniently carry it.  It was the size of a small bucket, and it looked pretty heavy to me. I reached out and lifted it off from where it was hovering.  My teeth gritted as I struggled to hold onto it.

Marigold stared at me and laughed.  “Silly kitty! Don’t you know anything about the world?” she asked me.  She touched the pot. “Just put it down. You look pretty funny holding it.” She laughed.

“Eh? I look… funny?” I panted, and chewed my lip.  It was so heavy I felt as though I wouldn’t be able to hold onto it. “Yes! Please help me, onee-sama?” I begged.

She laughed. “Yes… your tail is standing straight out and the hair on it is bristled like a bottle brush!” She grinned at me. “Oh, alright… but just put it down… you’ll see.  It’s ensamated, you know…”

The first part of what she had said that I seized upon was this.

“I have a hairy butt now?  The hair is so long?” I instantaneously dropped the pot, and ran in circles trying to see my butt, and all I saw was that thing that had evaded my vision.

Marigold watched and her laughter descended into manic giggles. I heard her laughter, but that thing I was chasing distracted me so much I couldn’t really be all that bothered by it.  Well, I think I probably blushed a lot!

So I nearly passed out from how hard I tried to figure out what was teasing me. I panted and twitched as I sat up, and Marigold petted me the whole time while I was recovering.  She couldn’t stop laughing softly while she comforted and cuddled me, and it felt so wonderful. I never had another girl pet me like that. I couldn’t help having a reaction to it.

I was pretty distracted when she stopped and I pouted as I looked after her.  She walked to the pot and I saw to my astonishment that the pot was hovering over the ground where I had to drop it.  When she touched it, she whispered something and I witnessed something gut-wrenching. The pot twisted, seemingly imploded, and disappeared.

“Eh? D-disposable culture?” I stammered out.

“What? No… it’s in my Arcarray.” She looked at me with a raised eyebrow as though I was supposed to know what she was talking about.

“Oh… maybe your kind aren’t well informed…” she apologized to me. “It’s a magical storage spell system. You can’t receive a license until you learn it and many other simple spells.  The life of an adventurer is difficult if you don’t have magical potential… but I guess that’s the reason why there aren’t any Bushi adventurers.”

You are such a cretin, Aimi!  How can you be so obtuse?

I heard that voice in my mind again. “Stalker-sama!!!” I exclaimed loudly.

Marigold was in the middle of pulling a bedroll out of nothing and I was too distracted to be stunned by the sight, but she dropped the bedroll and stared at me with wide eyes. “S-stalker? Sama? What? You have the wrong idea! I just like to take care of poor…” she trailed off, looking as though I had insulted her.

You’re a freaking catgirl, Aimi! Stalker-sama yelled at me.

“I… I’m a cat?” I asked, stunned. I looked at my hands; it wasn’t like I had any paws.

Imbecile!

I cried softly at that insulting response.  “I… I’m sorry… I’m a little weird… but I still love you, Stalker-sama!” I sniffled.

She didn’t respond, and Marigold crouched near me, petting me, and I felt something funny this time.  Something started to feel really good and I stopped crying. She was scratching my ears! But wait… the sensation came from the top of my head? It was like she was scratching my scalp, but I heard the motions of her fingernails as they rubbed.  Ehe! I couldn’t avoid blushing and squirming. I snuggled up against Marigold-onee-sama.

“Ehe… it’s okay, kitty.  You should get some rest.  Come with me,” Marigold urged me, and took my hand. I eagerly followed her and blinked at the bedroll.

“Ah… there’s only one?” I asked her.

“Well, yes… but since you’re so snuggly I don’t think you’ll object to sharing my bedroll. I wouldn’t leave you to sleep in the cold.  But please, Aimi… settle down quickly. We have a long journey tomorrow. We’ll be walking all day. We’re deep in the Wildflower Funeral Plains.”

I nodded and eagerly snuggled into the bedroll, and she joined me. “I’m sorry in advance, Aimi, for how cold the metal of my armor will be, but in a dangerous place it would be foolish to change clothes. We must be careful, and you’ll be warm soon enough.” She hugged me as she settled in.  I blushed redly and sighed happily as she held me.

“Um… you’re holding me so tightly, Marigold-onee-sama!” I blushed and drooled. Her skin was so soft and wonderful. “Onee-samaaaaa…” I purred tiredly.

“Well, it’s a little chilly… it only make sense for people to share warmth. Don’t read too much into it, kitty.”

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I slept better than I had in a long time, wrapped in Marigold-onee-sama’s arms.  In the next morning I woke up alone in the bedroll, and I was worried she had abandoned me, but when I rubbed my eyes and stretched to look, Marigold was seated nearby.  She smiled at me.

“Wake up and smell the breakfast, kitty! Well, it isn’t much… but eat and we’ll get started… if we don’t go soon, we may not reach my town before nightfall.  It’s on the edge of the plains. Be careful though, kitty. I’m sure you’re aware of it if you’re deep in the plains like this, but remember, we’ll probably be facing patches of stylidium lilies all day. It’s tiring, so conserve as much as possible. I can protect you to some extent. I hope you’ll have my back too.” She gestured to the food she was offering me. I accepted it and examined it for a moment. It looked like dried meat.  I smiled and grinned.

“Thanks for this meal, Marigold-onee-sama!” I started munching on it, and blinked.  It tasted a little like the soup from last night. “Um… is this meat or…”

“It’s actually a plant… I’m a vegetarian.  But it’s full of nourishment. It’s hard to stay strong when you’re a vegetarian, but if you know what to eat, it’s not so bad.  We’ll both need all our strength,” she laughed.

I giggled and finished the dried… um… vegetable? “What was it?” I asked her.

“There’s another breed of stylidium in the plains.  Dandelion. They’re the primary prey of the lilies. I’m told the flavor isn’t very different from people, which is why they developed such a taste for humans.  They go insane when they sense the activity of people above the ground. It’s like we were like… um… catnip?” she looked at me.

“That’s… weird… it tastes like people?” I looked at her with a horrified expression.

“Well, that’s a theory… so don’t worry about it, kitty. Dandelions eat small animals. They’re easy to defeat.” Marigold stood and stretched. “Alright… get up and let’s get going.” She sighed as she touched her pouch on her belt.  Another object winked into existence, expanding before my eyes in that same wrenching way. It was a decanter. She took a long pull from it, and I climbed out of the bedroll. I started to fold it up to help Marigold-onee-sama, but she knelt by my side and touched it with that whisper.  I squeaked as it twisted and crumpled on itself, winking out. I stared off into space, dazed.

“I… I need a drink too…” I mumbled with a dry mouth.  What kind of a crazy world is this? But it has let me snuggle up to someone sexy like Marigold-onee-sama! Oh, Kami-sama! Thank you so much! I thanked the skies, tears rolling from my eyes joyfully.  I lifted the decanter to my lips and took a long swig like Marigold-onee-sama.

“N… NO! Bad kitty!” Marigold yelped. “That’s not good for your kind… oh no… you’ll be a mess for a day!” She struggled to pull the water bottle away.  The liquid was not water, actually. It tasted really sweet and cloying and its savor was kind of reminiscent of the taste of wine…

Oh, no… I’m too embarrassed to write this memory… I’ll leave it to Marigold-onee-sama… uuuuu…

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A note from Marigold:

Aimi was too embarrassed! She badgered me to explain what happened… baka kitty.  Really… she just charges ahead without waiting to find out if she’s stepping into a trap!  But she’s really kind of adorable. I can’t leave her alone!

So after that, she was completely drunk.  She was even more affectionate. I had to slap her a few times before she’d stop trying to tear my armor off.  Some people say when they’re under an influence they show their real self. I guess she’s kind of a pervert. After I slapped her silly, we got going across the plains, and she danced the whole time.  Everything seemed like it was going to be alright, because the stylidium lilies didn’t show up for a while… some dandelions popped out and I dispatched those while silly kitty danced and pranced drunkenly. Afterwards, she tried to undress me again and I had to slap her again.  She even groped my rear!

We were safe enough, but her carrying on attracted the lilies and they burst from the ground.  I was terrified because it was like every single one within a hundred miles had been attracted by her capering.  The ground all around erupted, and I was sure I was dead. There was no way I could handle that! Stupid cat! She showed me her strange magic again.  As the vines wrapped themselves around us and fought each other to reach us, there was an explosion. Energy rippled from Aimi’s body and strange large objects appeared and slammed into the lilies.  

I don’t know what they were.  They were massive and the collisions were spectacular.  The sound of the screams of lilies filled the air, mixed with the sound of glass shattering.  The things rumbled like giant cats purring. I wanted to examine them more closely, but as soon as one appeared, it disappeared and another replaced it.  More than once I had to flip into the air to avoid getting hit by them. Meanwhile Aimi danced like a fool. The last standing lily grasped an exhausted, giggling Aimi.  I had to defeat my first stylidium lily to save her. Idiot!

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Kami’s Note:

So many facepalms…  It’s your fault, fool!  I would have asked you what power you’d want, but you just wouldn’t stop for anything.